On October 7, the Owen Public Library and the O-W Book Club sponsored a Right to Read Night event for Banned Books Week. The event was attended by a few community members that believe in the power of books. A lively discussion was had for about two hours.
The book that the national Right to Read Night had chosen to feature this year was brown girl dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. It tells the story in verse of the author growing up as a black child during the Civil Rights Movement. This book has been challenged/banned because of its racial themes and history, discomfort with the real history of the Jim Crow South, and general censorship trends across the country.
Banned Books Week is October 4-10. Materials are considered banned if it they are removed based on the objections of a person or group. Materials are considered challenged if there is an attempt to have materials removed or restricted based on the objections of a person or group.
Four things that should be noted in regard to books, according to righttoreadnight.com are: 1) The First Amendment prohibits the removal of books from school and public libraries because of the ideas they express, 2) It is essential that public schools and libraries provide collections that represent a broad range of ideas and experiences, 3) Members of all communities must see themselves reflected in public and school library books, programming and resources, and 4) Books have the power to change and even save lives by fostering conversations about sexuality, race, and gender.
More books are being targeted than ever before. Only 3% of challenges come from parents. Around 92% are initiated by pressure groups and government officials. This number was only 72% two short years ago. So don’t let anyone tell you that books are banned because of parents’ concern for their children. They are banned because of censorship. In 2025 the American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom tracked 5,668 (4,255 unique titles) books that were banned. This was only 66% of the books challenged. Another 920 were restricted. There were three attempts in Wisconsin, all of which failed. Most of the bans and challenges take place in Texas and Florida because of laws in those states. PENAmerica tracked 12,000 instances of book banning affecting 7,370 titles across 114 school districts in the 2025-26 school year.
The most targeted themes are race, racism, gender identity and sexuality. One of the books mentioned Wednesday night as challenged was Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax because it puts logging in a bad light. That is not a reason to ban a book. I am not sure there is ever a good reason to ban a book. If the content of a book offends you, don’t read it. If you don’t feel right about your children having access, don’t let them read it. That is your choice.
But the choice should never be one of the government or a certain organized group telling us what we can and can’t read. That clearly is censorship and makes for an ignorant society. Books shouldn’t be banned because they make you feel bad. Our history is messy and books are one way we learn from past mistakes.
If anyone suggests banning a book, the first question you should ask them is, “Have you read the book?” That means the entire book, not just snippets from the internet. If the answer is no, they shouldn’t be trying to ban it. We should all stand up for what is right and the freedom of all to read and learn.